The Purple Rose of Cairo

Synopsis: Cecilia is a waitress in New Jersey during the Depression and is searching for an escape from her dreary life. Tom Baxter is a dashing young archaeologist in the film "The Purple Rose of Cairo." After losing her job Cecilia goes to see the film in hopes of raising her spirits. Much to her surprise Tom Baxter walks off the screen and into her life. There's only one problem..Tom isn't real. Meanwhile Hollywood is up in arms when they dicover that other Tom Baxters are trying to leave the screen in other theatres. Will Tom ever return and finish the film or will he decide to stay in the real world?
Director(s): Woody Allen
Production: Orion Pictures Corporation
  Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 14 wins & 14 nominations.
 
IMDB:
7.7
Metacritic:
75
Rotten Tomatoes:
91%
PG
Year:
1985
82 min
1,732 Views


Cecilia, be careful.

Are you all right?

You`re gonna like this one.

lt`s better than last week`s.

lt`s more romantic.

Miss, l wanted oatmeal

before my scrambled eggs.

Sorry. l`ll get it right away.

l get cereal, too.

And a doughnut.

Cereal and a doughnut. Right.

Listen, there`s a new movie

at the Jewel starting tonight.

l didn`t even get

to see last week`s.

You missed it? lt was wonderful.

l love Jane Froman.

And James Melton

plays a hotel porter...

and then he becomes

a radio singer...

and then an opera singer.

The music was just beautiful.

The one that l liked

is ''Okay, America.''

l saw that twice.

That was great.

When she threatens

to kill Lew Ayres--

l love Lew Ayres` looks.

Do you think he`s married?

Are you crazy?

He`s married to Ginger Rogers.

They got married on a boat

off the island of Catalina.

They live in Beverly Hills

and Hollywood and Spain.

He used to be married

to Lola Lane...

but Ginger`s better for him.

Where`s my toast?

Coming right up. One second.

Ginger used to be

married to Jack--

Let`s go, girls.

Let`s go, Cecilia.

Your sister is slow.

But she`s still learning.

Ladies, there`s a depression on.

A lot of other people

would like this job...

if you can`t handle it.

No, l can handle it.

lt`s OK.

Ginger used to be married

to Jack Culpepper...

who l think took out

Ruth Chatterton before--

That`s the second one this week.

l`m sorry. l`ll pick it all up.

Come on, Cecilia. Shape up.

Hey, Monk, here comes your wife.

Boy, am l glad to see you.

You got any dough?

Tips weren`t

so good today.

Come on, give me something.

l`m busted.

l hear there`s some jobs opening

up over at the ice factory.

No, there`s nothing.

l was there.

Harriet Rufus says

all you guys do all day...

is just pitch pennies...

and make passes at

the girls who walk by.

Harriet Rufus is a douche bag.

Listen, l gotta save the rest

for groceries and stuff.

All right. Got it?

What are you doing here?

You want to go

to the movies tonight?

There`s an early show.

-l can`t.

-How come?

The guys are

coming over tonight.

-Again?

-You don`t like it?

Well, all you do

is drink and play dice...

and l wind up getting smacked.

l gotta get even, don`t l?

l owe everybody in town.

You`re never home anymore

except to play dice and cards.

Meanwhile, l gotta

take in extra laundry...

after work to pay the rent.

What do you want?

Did l close the factory?

You didn`t use

to be like this, Monk.

l got a lot on my mind.

You think l like

scratching around for work...

living like a bum

the last two years?

l don`t know how much longer

l can go on like this.

Listen, the country`ll

get back working again.

Things are bound to get better.

l promise. l`m crazy about you.

You never pay

any attention to me anymore.

Plus, l thought if we could

go to the movies tonight...

you could forget

your troubles a little.

You like sitting

through that junk, OK?

l`m going to shoot crap.

Go to the movie by yourself.

You make passes at

the girls who go by?

You`re not my boss.

And don`t give me that look.

You`d think l was a criminal.

Come on. Give us a hug.

Just one. Come on. All right?

And don`t come home late.

l worry.

All right? See you later?

Let`s go!

Two, please.

Two.

Just one tonight, please, Doris.

Thank you.

-Evening, Mr. Ruskin.

-Nice to see you.

Popcorn, please.

Jason, l`m bored.

l`m bored with cocktail parties

and opening nights...

and evenings at the opera

and weekends at the races.

A few days in Paris

might be just the thing...

to get the creative juices

flowing again.

l can have George cable

the Ritz for the usual suite.

l`m not talking about Paris.

l`m talking about someplace

completely different...

like Morocco or Egypt.

A boat trip down the Nile

sounds so romantic.

l`ve got just the dress

to wear to the pyramids.

We can leave next week,

spend a couple of weeks there.

Maybe stop in Casablanca

or Tangiers...

as long as

we`re hopping around...

and still be back in time

for the opening of my new play.

To Cairo and Morocco

and Tangiers.

To all the exotic and romantic

places in the world.

There`s another room in here.

lsn`t it divine?

Everything`s

so perfectly preserved.

lt`s quite lovely.

l just don`t want to feel

a bandaged hand at my throat.

Hi there. Who are you?

We`re sightseeing.

We thought we were alone.

You gave me quite a start!

l`m awfully sorry.

Tom Baxter--

explorer, adventurer.

l`m doing a little

archaeological work.

A real-life explorer!

l`ve come in search of

the Purple Rose of Cairo.

lt`s an old legend

that`s fascinated me for years.

A pharaoh had a rose

painted purple for his queen.

And now, the story says, purple

roses grow wild at her tomb.

How romantic.

And you?

We`re going back

to New York tomorrow.

lt`s been

a refreshing two weeks.

We should bring him back to

New York to meet the Countess.

She loves anything

in a pith helmet.

Right!

l will say it`s tempting.

Then it`s settled.

You can explain to us...

what we`ve been looking at

for the last two weeks...

and we can take you

nightclubbing.

lt`s so impulsive, but...

l`ll come!

Why not?

What`s life without

a little risk-taking?

Who knows?

A fortuneteller predicted

l`d fall in love in New York.

Table for six, please, Arturo.

Six, sir.

Now, ladies and gentlemen...

the Copacabana

is proud to present...

Miss Kitty Haynes.

Ours could be a different sort

of love affair

Those busybodies

couldn`t help but stare...

l think our poetic

little archaeologist...

is about to make a discovery.

Ain`t life swell?

Open the champagne.

l feel like getting

plushed to the scuppers.

Let`s take it

one day at a time

And who cares

just how it turns out?

Check, please.

Miss, could l have

the check, please?

Come on, the man

wants his check!

Sorry. Here you go.

So what were you thinking about?

A penthouse, the desert,

and kissing on a dance floor.

So you did go to the movies

last night after all.

The people were so beautiful.

They spoke so cleverly

and do such romantic things.

The guy playing Tom Baxter

was so cute!

Do you want to go

to the movies after work?

l would love to see it again.

What is this, a social club?

l got a sink full of dishes.

Come on, girls!

Thanks a lot.

Well, l am impressed.

You have yourself

quite a place here.

l still can`t get over the fact

that 24 hours ago...

l was in an Egyptian tomb.

l didn`t know any

of you wonderful people...

and here l am now.

l`m on the verge

of a madcap Manhattan weekend.

l hope you like

your martinis very dry.

No, thanks.

l`ll wait for that glass

of champagne at the Copacabana.

l`m home, Monk.

What are you

doing home so early?

l thought l said

you can go to the movies.

l did.

l`d better go.

No, don`t, stay.

This is Cecilia.

This is my friend Olga.

Olga`s an acrobat.

l am not!

l have to go home.

Come on. l was gonna

tell you your fortune.

You`re drunk.

Rate this script:4.0 / 1 vote

Woody Allen

Heywood "Woody" Allen is an American actor, comedian, filmmaker, and playwright, whose career spans more than six decades. more…

All Woody Allen scripts | Woody Allen Scripts

4 fans

Submitted on August 05, 2018

Discuss this script with the community:

0 Comments

    Translation

    Translate and read this script in other languages:

    Select another language:

    • - Select -
    • 简体中文 (Chinese - Simplified)
    • 繁體中文 (Chinese - Traditional)
    • Español (Spanish)
    • Esperanto (Esperanto)
    • 日本語 (Japanese)
    • Português (Portuguese)
    • Deutsch (German)
    • العربية (Arabic)
    • Français (French)
    • Русский (Russian)
    • ಕನ್ನಡ (Kannada)
    • 한국어 (Korean)
    • עברית (Hebrew)
    • Gaeilge (Irish)
    • Українська (Ukrainian)
    • اردو (Urdu)
    • Magyar (Hungarian)
    • मानक हिन्दी (Hindi)
    • Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Italiano (Italian)
    • தமிழ் (Tamil)
    • Türkçe (Turkish)
    • తెలుగు (Telugu)
    • ภาษาไทย (Thai)
    • Tiếng Việt (Vietnamese)
    • Čeština (Czech)
    • Polski (Polish)
    • Bahasa Indonesia (Indonesian)
    • Românește (Romanian)
    • Nederlands (Dutch)
    • Ελληνικά (Greek)
    • Latinum (Latin)
    • Svenska (Swedish)
    • Dansk (Danish)
    • Suomi (Finnish)
    • فارسی (Persian)
    • ייִדיש (Yiddish)
    • հայերեն (Armenian)
    • Norsk (Norwegian)
    • English (English)

    Citation

    Use the citation below to add this screenplay to your bibliography:

    Style:MLAChicagoAPA

    "The Purple Rose of Cairo" Scripts.com. STANDS4 LLC, 2024. Web. 18 Dec. 2024. <https://www.scripts.com/script/the_purple_rose_of_cairo_16388>.

    We need you!

    Help us build the largest writers community and scripts collection on the web!

    Watch the movie trailer

    The Purple Rose of Cairo

    The Studio:

    ScreenWriting Tool

    Write your screenplay and focus on the story with many helpful features.


    Quiz

    Are you a screenwriting master?

    »
    What is the "denouement" in screenwriting?
    A The opening scene of the story
    B The climax of the story
    C The rising action of the story
    D The final resolution of the story